Foldable garment hanger

ABSTRACT

A garment hanger, the components of which are adapted to be assembled and disassembled without the aid of tools, thereby not only avoiding the manufacturing expense of assembling said components but enabling marketing such hanger as a kit of components that, after assembly thereof by the purchaser from an open garment-supporting position of its components, is foldable to a space-saving storing condition.

United States Patent 1191 Murray 1 Jan.7,1975

[ FOLDABLE GARMENT HANGER [76] Inventor: Ralph P. Murray, 2591 Armacost Ave., Los Angeles, Calif. 90064 22 Filed: Feb. 25, 1974 21 Appl. 190.; 445,819

[52] US. Cl. 223/94 [51] int. Cl. A47j 51/10 [58] Field of Search 223/94, 89, 85

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,290,722 7/1942 Weingarten 223/94 2,777,62l 1/1957 Murray 223/94 Murray .1 223/94 Vargo v 223/89 Primary Examiner-George H. Krizmanich [57] ABSTRACT A garment hanger, the components of which are adapted to be assembled and disassembled without the aid of tools, thereby not only avoiding the manufacturing expense of assembling said components but enabling marketing such hanger as a kit of components that, after assembly thereof by the purchaser from an open garment-supporting position of its components, is foldable to a space-saving storing condition.

3 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures 1 FOLDABLE GARMENT HANGER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION To conserve storage space of unused garment hangers so they may be stored in relatively small spaces, as in dresser drawers, thereby providing increased space on hanger rods for garments on such hanger.

Applicants US. Pat. No. 2,782,969 is deemed to represent prior art that teaches the use of hanger arms that are pivotally connected to a cap that has hanging engagement with the rod-engaging hanger hook.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A garment hanger that comprises a pair of similar garment-supporting arms that are separable and pivotally connected to a hood member, a member for look ing said arms in outspread garment-supporting position and having sliding engagement with said hood member so said arms may be released from their locked outspread position and either detached from the hood or swung to folded position, the arms-locking member being attached to a hanger hook.

An object of the present invention is to provide a garment hanger the component parts of which are separate units and can be marketed as a kit that can be assembled by the purchaser without the aid of tools.

Another object of the invention is to provide a hanger, as above, the garment-hanging arms thereof being coplanar and pivotally moveable in their common plane between locked garment-supporting condition to folded storing condition.

This invention also has for its objects to provide such means that are positive in operation, convenient in use, easily installed in a working position and easily disconnected therefrom, economical of manufacture, relatively simple, and of general superiority and serviceability.

The invention'also comprises novel detail of construction and novel combinations and arrangements of parts, which will more fully appear in the course of the following description, which is based on the accompanying drawing. However, said drawing merely shows, and the following specification merely describes one embodiment of the present invention, which is given by way of illustration or example only.

In the drawing, like reference characters designate similar parts in the several views.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a foldable garment hanger according to the present invention, shown partly in section, and with the arms locked in garmentsupporting condition.

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of said garment hanger with its arms folded for storing of the device.

FIGS. San d 4'a'f enlarged fragmentary section views as taken on the respective lines 3-3 and 4-4 of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The present garment hanger comprises, generally, a hood member 5 that is advantageously molded of any one of the rigid plastics, a pair of similar garmentsupporting arms 6 of similar plastic material and arranged in coplanar relation and separably and pivotally connected to the hood member, and globular means 7 for releasably locking said arms 6 in oppositely directed garment-supporting positions. Said means 7 is connected to a hanger hook 8 by means of which the hanger may be supported from a rod 9 or from any hook, door top, ledge, etc. in the usual manner.

The hood member 6 comprises front and rear sides 10 joined at their upper ends by a transversely curved top portion 11 to provide a channel-like space 12. A vertical slot 14 in each side 10 extends from the mentioned curved portion 11 downwardly through the lower ends of said hood member sides 10, said slots forming a guideway for the arms-locking means 7 which, thereby, may be moved between arms-locking and arms-releasing positions. As seen best in FIGS. 1 and 4, two pivot pins 15 symmetrically spaced, one on each side of the guideway slots, are molded as integral parts of the hood member, the same being horizontally aligned with the upper end of said guideway slots, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

The garment-supporting arms 6 may be of different lengths. Irrespective of their length, the portions of the arms that are pivotally connected to the hood member 5 are alike. As shown in FIG. 1, the end of each arm 6 is provided with a bayonet slot 16 that is engaged with one of the pivot pins 15, each arm 6, adjacent the slot 16 therein, having a concavely curved edge 17 that is adapted to engage the globular surface of the means 7 when in outspread garment supporting position FIG. 2.

The means 7 is shown as a ball which is secured to an axial portion 18 of the hanger hook 8, the same extending through a vertical hole 19 in the portion 11 of the hood member. It will be clear that the hanger hook 8 and the hood 5 may be relatively rotated so the rodengaging portion of 20 the former and the arms 6 that extend from the latter may be relatively oriented to conserve and make economical use of closet space. The ball shape of the means 7 provides a convexly spherical surface that interlocks with the concavities 17 of the arms. Thus, in a simple manner, the arms 6 are firmly held in garment-supporting position when the parts of the hanger are in the position of FIG. 1, and, as laterexplained, relative rotational adjustment of the hanger 8 and hood 5 and arms 6 may be effected.

It will be noted that none of the components of the present device are fixedly secured to each other except the connection between the arms-locking ball 7 and the hanger hook 8. As can be seen from FIG. 3, the latter connection may be effected without tools by inserting the slitted and spread end 21 of the hanger hook, while said end is compressed between the fingers, inserted into a hole in the ball, and allowing the same to spread and thereby hold the ball against the shoulder 22 of the hanger hook. This ball attaching means is given as exemplary since other connections not requiring tools may be resorted to without invention.

With the member 7, the concavities l7, and the open ends of the bayonet slots aligned as in FIG. 1, the arms 6 are in locked garment-supporting condition. By withdrawing the member 7 downwardly, the arms 6 are released to be capable of assuming the folded position of FIG. 2. When said member 7 is moved out of the aligned position above mentioned, the arms 6 can be retracted toward each other so the open ends 16a of the bayonet slots 16 can be disengaged from the pins 15 and said arm completely disconnected from the hood 5. Re-Assembly of the arms on the hood are as easily effected.

From the foregoing it will be clear that easy attachment to and detachment of the arms 6 from the hood may be effected so that different types of arms or arms of different sizes may be fitted to the hood. With the ball 7 in the position of FIG. 1 at or adjacent the lower end of the hood, the slot-provided ends of the arms may ,be simply hooked onto or off the pins 15. To lock the arms 6 in garment-supporting condition, the ball is moved to its raised position while interlocked with concavities 17 of the arms.

lf strength is required in the hood, the shoulders 23 may be provided, during molding of the hood, with transverse closure walls which also may constitute stops that retain the arms in their open condition.

While the foregoing has illustrated and described what is now contemplated to be the best mode of carrying out the invention, the construction is, of course, subject to modification without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

l. A foldable garment hanger comprising:

a hood having spaced sides connected by a closed upper portion of the hood, a vertical guideway being formed between said sides,

a pair of transversely spaced pivot pins, one on each side of the guideway and integrally molded to extend between the hood sides,

a hanger hook connected by its lower end to the globular member and slidably extending through an opening in said closed upper portion of the hood,

a globular member slidably and rotationally mounted in said guideway and movable between a position between said pivot pins and a position adjacent the lower end of the hood, said globular member being connected to the lower end of said hanger hook, and

a pair of similar garment-supporting arms, each provided at one end with a bayonet slot for separable and pivotal engagement with said pins, and with a concave edge that rotationally interfits with the globular surface of the globular member to lock said arms in spread garment-supporting position when a hanger hook affixed to the globular member is in hanging engagement from above.

2. A garment hanger according to claim 1 in which, when the globular member and the concave edges of the arms are engaged, the bayonet slot openings are outwardly directed and the removal of the arms from the hood effected by the inward retraction off the pins of the ends of the arms that are provided with the bayonet slots and the concave edges.

3. A foldable garment hanger comprising:

a hood of plastic material formed to have spaced sides integrally connected at their upper ends, said sides having guide-forming vertical slots open at the lower end of the hood and closed adjacent their upper end,

a pair of transversely spaced pivot pins, one on each side of the mentioned guide, said pins being integrally molded to extend across the space between the hood sides and be connected to the inner surfaces of said hood sides,

a globular locking member slidably and rotationally engaged in the mentioned guide, said member being connected to a hanger hook that extends through an opening in the closed end of the hood, and

a pair of similar garment-supporting arms with one end of each being provided with a bayonet slot and when introduced into the mentioned space between the hood sides, having pivotal engagement with the pivot pins of the hood, said arm ends, adjacent the bayonet slots being each provided with a concave edge that rotatively interfits with the globular surface of the locking member to retain the arms in spread, garment-supporting condition and yet permitting relative rotation of the hanger hook and said arms and hood. 

1. A foldable garment hanger comprising: a hood having spaced sides connected by a closed upper portion of the hood, a vertical guideway being formed between said sides, a pair of transversely spaced pivot pins, one on each side of the guideway and integrally molded to extend between the hood sides, a hanger hook connected by its lower end to the globular member and slidably extending through an opening in said closed upper portion of the hood, a globular member slidably and rotationally mounted in said guideway and movable between a position between said pivot pins and a position adjacent the lower end of the hood, said globular member being connected to the lower end of said hanger hook, and a pair of similar garment-supporting arms, each provided at one end with a bayonet slot for separable and pivotal engagement with said pins, and with a concave edge that rotationally interfits with the globular surface of the globular member to lock said arms in spread garment-supporting position when a hanger hook affixed to the globular member is in hanging engagement from above.
 2. A garment hanger according to claim 1 in which, when the globular member and the concave edges of the arms are engaged, the bayonet slot openings are outwardly directed and the removal of the arms from the hood effected by the inward retraction off the pins of the ends of the arms that are provided with the bayonet slots and the concave edges.
 3. A foldable garment hanger comprising: a hood of plastic material formed to have spaced sides integrally connected at their upper ends, said sides having guide-forming vertical slots open at the lower end of the hood and closed adjacent their upper end, a pair of transversely spaced pivot pins, one on each side of the mentioned guide, said pins being integrally molded to extend across the space between the hood sides and be connected to the inner surfaces of said hood sides, a globular locking member slidably and rotationally engaged in the mentioned guide, said member being connected to a hanger hook that extends through an opening in the closed end of the hood, and a pair of similar garment-supporting arms with one end of each being provided with a bayonet slot and when introduced into the mentioned space between the hood sides, having pivotal engagement with the pivot pins of the hood, said arm ends, adjacent the bayonet slots being each provided with a concave edge that rotatively interfits with the globular surface of the locking member to retain the arms in spread, garment-supporting condition and yet permitting relative rotation of the hanger hook and said arms and hood. 